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The future of many organizations depends on their ability to harness the power of information technology, and good project managers continue to be in high demand. Colleges have responded to this need by establishing courses in project management and making them part of the information technology, management, engineering, and other curricula. Corporations are investing in continuing education to help develop effective project managers and project teams. This text provides a much-needed framework for teaching courses in project management, especially those that emphasize managing information technology projects. The first six editions of this text were extremely well received by people in academia and the workplace. The current version builds on the strengths of the previous editions and adds new, important information and features. It's impossible to read a newspaper, magazine, or Web page without hearing about the impact of information technology on our society. Information is traveling faster and being shared by more people than ever before. You can buy just about anything online, surf the Web on a mobile phone, or use a wireless Internet connection at your local coffee shop. Companies have linked their systems together to help them fill orders on time and better serve their customers. Software companies are continually developing new products to help streamline our work and get better results. When technology works well, it is almost invisible. But did it ever occur to you to ask, "Who makes these complex technologies and systems happen?" Because you're reading this text, you must have an interest in the "behind-the scenes" aspects of technology. If I've done my job well, you'll begin to see the many innovations society is currently enjoying as the result of thousands of successful information technology projects. In this text, you'll read about IT projects around the world that went well, including Mittal Steel Poland's Implementation of SAP that unified IT systems to improve business and financial processes; Dell Earth and other green computing projects that save energy and millions of dollars; Six Sigma projects such as the project to improve case load management at Baptist St. Anthony's Hospital in Amarillo, Texas; the systems infrastructure project at the Boots Company in the United Kingdom that takes advantage of supplier competition to cut costs and improve services; and many more. Of course, not all projects are successful. Factors such as time, money, and unrealistic expectations, among many others, can sabotage a promising effort if it is not properly managed. In this text, you'll also learn from the mistakes made on many projects that were not successful. I have written this guide in an effort to educate you, tomorrow's project managers, about what will help make a project succeed-and what can make it fail. You'll also see how projects are used in everyday media, such as television and film, and how companies use best practices in project management. Many readers tell me how much they enjoy reading these real world examples in the What Went Right?, What Went Wrong?, Media Snapshot, and Best Practice features. As practitioners know, there is no "one size fits all" solution to managing projects. By seeing how different organizations successfully implement project management, you can help your organization do the same. Although project management has been an established field for many years, managing information technology projects requires ideas and information that go beyond standard project management. For example, many information technology projects fail because of a lack of user input, incomplete and changing requirements, and a lack of executive support. This guide includes suggestions for dealing with these issues. New technologies can also aid in managing information technology projects, and examples of using software to assist in project management are included throughout the guide. Guide to Information Technology Project Management is the only guide to apply all 10 project management knowledge areas and all five process groups to information technology projects. As you will learn, the project management knowledge areas are project integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resource, communications, risk, procurement, and stakeholder management. The five process groups are initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. This text builds on the PMBOK Guide, Fifth Edition, an American National Standard, to provide a solid framework and context for managing information technology projects. It also includes an Section, Guide to Using Microsoft Project 2010, that many readers find invaluable. A second Section provides advice on earning and maintaining Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI) as well as information on other certification programs, such as CompTIA's Project certification. A third Section provides additional case studies and information on using simulation and mind-mapping software to help readers apply their project management skills. Guide to Information Technology Project Management, provides practical lessons in project management for students and practitioners alike. By weaving together theory and practice, this text presents an understandable, integrated view of the many concepts, skills, tools, and techniques of information technology project management. The comprehensive design of the text provides a strong foundation for students and practitioners in project management. THE CURRENT VERSION OF THIS PM GUIDE Building on the success of the previous editions, Guide to Information Technology Project Management, , introduces a uniquely effective combination of features. The main changes in the Current version include the following: • Several changes were made to synchronize the current version with the PMBOK Guide, Fifth Edition. Changes were made based on the exposure draft released in February 2012. The biggest change was the addition of a tenth knowledge area, Project Stakeholder Management. This text includes a new section to address this important topic. • Includes additional information on agile project management. Section 2 includes general information on this popular concept, and Section 3 provides a second case study illustrating the outputs produced for the JWD Consulting project when using an agile approach. For example, you can see a sample product backlog, a sprint backlog, a burndown chart, and key artifacts or outputs produced when using Scrum, the most popular agile method. • Section C, Additional Cases and Software, provides information about using several simulation software tools. Several suppliers offer discounts to users of this text. A new section provides instructions for accessing a special 60-day trial of MindView Business software. This software provides the capability to create mind maps, a powerful tool for creating a SWOT analysis or work breakdown structure. The software also allows users to convert a mind map into a Gantt chart. • A new feature, Global Issues, provides examples of how project management concepts and practices affect people around the globe. • Updated examples are provided throughout the text. You'll notice several new examples in the Current version that explain recent events in managing real information technology projects. Several of the What Went Right?, What Went Wrong?, Media Snapshot, and Best Practice examples have been updated to keep you current. Additional examples and results of new studies are included throughout the text, with appropriate citations. • User feedback is incorporated. Based on feedback from reviewers, students, instructors, practitioners, and translators, you'll see several additional changes to help clarify information. (This guide has been translated into Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and Czech.) • A new web site provides access to informative links from the end notes, lecture notes, inter active quizzes, templates, additional running cases, suggested readings, and many other items to enhance your learning. OUR APPROACH Many people have been practicing some form of project management with little or no formal study in this area. New books and articles are written each year as we discover more about the field of project management, and project management software continues to advance. Because the project management field and the technology industry change rapidly, you cannot assume that what worked even a few years ago is still the best approach today. This text provides up-to-date information on how good project management and effective use of software can help you manage projects, especially information technology projects. Six distinct features of this text include its relation ship to the Project Management Body of Knowledge, its detailed guide for using Microsoft Project 2010, its value in preparing for Project Management Professional and other certification exams, its inclusion of running case studies and online tem plates, its companion (premium) Web site, and its inclusion of a 60-day trial of MindView Business software. Based on PMBOK Guide, Fifth Edition The Project Management Institute (PMI) created the Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (the PMBOK Guide) as a framework and starting point for understanding project management. It includes an introduction to project management, brief descriptions of all 10 project management knowledge areas, and a glossary of terms. The PMBOK® Guide is, however, just that-a guide. This text uses the PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition exposure draft (2012) as a foundation, but goes beyond it by providing more details, highlighting additional topics, and providing a real-world context for project management. Guide to Information Technology Project Management explains project management specifically as it applies to managing information technology projects in the 21st century. It includes several unique features to bring you the excitement of this dynamic field. (For more information on features, see the Pedagogical Features section.) Detailed Guide for How to Use Microsoft Project 2010 Software has advanced tremendously in recent years, and it is important for project managers and their teams to use software to help manage information technology projects. Guide to Information Technology Project Management includes a detailed guide in Section A for using the leading project management software on the market-Microsoft Project 2010. Examples that use Project and other software tools are integrated throughout the text. Section A, Guide to Using Microsoft Project 2010, teaches you in a systematic way to use this powerful software to help in project scope, time, cost, human resource, and communications management. Resource for PMP and Other Certification Exams Professional certification is an important factor in recognizing and ensuring quality in a profession. PMI provides certification as a Project Management Professional (PMP), and this text is an excellent resource for studying for the certification exam as well as the entry-level Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) exam. This text will also help you pass other certification exams, such as CompTIA's Project+ exam. Having working experience on projects does not mean you can easily pass the PMP or other certification exams. I like to tell my students a story about taking a driver's license test after moving to Minnesota. I had been driving safely and without accidents for over 16 years, so I thought I could just walk in and take the test. I was impressed by the sophisticated computer system used to administer the test. The questions were displayed on a large touch-screen monitor, often with an image or video to illustrate traffic signs or driving situations. I became concerned when I had no idea how to answer several questions, and I was perplexed when the test seemed to stop and a message appeared: "Please see the person at the service counter." This was a polite way of saying I had failed the test! After control ling my embarrassment, I picked up one of the Minnesota driving test brochures, studied it for an hour or two that night, and passed the test the next day. The point of this story is to emphasize the importance of studying information from the organization that creates the test and not to be overconfident that your experience is enough. Because this text is based on PMI's PMBOK Guide, Fifth Edition, it provides a valuable reference for studying for PMP certification. It is also an excellent reference for CompTIA's Project+ exam. I have earned both of these certifications and kept them in mind when writing this text. Exercises, Running Cases, Templates, Sample Documents, and Optional Simulation Software Based on feedback from readers, the Current version continues to provide challenging exercises and running cases to help students apply concepts in each section. The text includes more than 50 templates, examples of real project documents, and information on several simulation software tools that you can use to practice your skills in managing a project. All of these features help the subject matter come alive and have more meaning. ORGANIZATION AND CONTENT Guide to Information Technology Project Management, is organized into three main sections to provide a framework for project management, a detailed description of each project management knowledge area, and three appendices to provide practical information for applying project management. The first three sections form the first section, which introduces the project management framework and sets the stage for the remaining sections. Sections 4 through 13 form the second section of the text, which describes each of the project management knowledge areas-project integration, scope, time, cost, quality, human resource, communications, risk, procurement, and stakeholder management-in the context of information technology projects. An entire section is dedicated to each knowledge area. Each of these sections includes sections that map to their major processes as described in the PMBOK® Guide, Fifth Edition. For example, the section on project quality management includes sections on planning quality management, performing quality assurance, and controlling quality. Additional sections highlight other important concepts related to each knowledge area, such as Six Sigma, testing, maturity models, and using software to assist in project quality management. Each section also includes detailed examples of key project management tools and techniques as applied to information technology projects. For example, the section on project integration management includes samples of various project-selection documents, such as net present value analyses, ROI calculations, payback analyses, and weighted scoring models. The project scope management section includes a sample project charter, a project scope statement, and several work breakdown structures for information technology projects. Sections A through C form the third section of the guide, which provides practical information to help you apply project management skills to real or practice projects. By following the detailed, step-by-step guide in Section A, which includes more than 60 screen illustrations, you will learn how to use Project 2010. Section B summarizes what you need to know to earn PMP or other certifications related to project management. Section C provides additional running cases and information on using simulation and mind-mapping software to help you practice your new skills. |
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